Hearn defends snooker changes

Wednesday 7 December 2011 13:57 BST

Barry Hearn

World Snooker chairman Barry Hearn has said he will seek legal advice following Mark Allen's comments about his running of the sport.

Allen spoke out at the williamhill.com UK Championships in York on Monday, calling for Hearn to step aside and accusing him of reneging on promises and looking to "make money for himself". Allen also claimed Hearn's attitude was one of "**** the players", an outburst that has already brought him a referral to the game's governing body, the WPBSA.

Speaking in a number of national newspapers on Wednesday, Hearn said: "I'm disappointed. And while there's a fabulous tournament going on I'd hoped we could concentrate on that instead of the comments of just one player. I'm also disappointed by the personal attack Mark has made with his comments that are slanderous and will be taking separate legal advice on the matter."

The 25-year-old Northern Irishman could now be charged, but his review of Hearn's governance of the sport may also have repercussions away from the table.

Allen's initial ire came over the reduction of frames at the UK Championships, which is regarded as the second-biggest event on the sport's calendar.

First and second-round matches have been cut from 17 frames to 11, while fans can now watch both at once after the partition that separated the tables was removed.

Hearn has honed his reputation as a visionary in darts, but Allen was concerned that snooker was starting to follow darts' lead.

"I've got no doubt he'll tweak the World Championship," Allen added. "Barry's just there to make money for himself, it doesn't matter about the players. The whole tradition of the game is going to pot.

"He (Hearn) needs to get away from the darts factor. It's getting close to that. I think in the long run he'll probably do good for snooker, but not for my generation. It's time to let someone else have a go."

Hearn took over at the top of the sport 18 months ago after being voted in by the players, and has made a number of changes already, including increasing the number of ranking events by two and adding in another 13 tournaments that carry ranking points. Prize money has also gone up.